ALUMINIUM PROJECT DELAYED

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29827, 21 May 1962, Page 10

ALUMINIUM PROJECT DELAYED

Plant May Not Produce Until Early 1970 (From Our Own Reporter) WELLINGTON, May 20. The aluminium smelter project in Southland is now not expected to be in production until early in 1970—four years later than was, at first, planned. Official sources emphasise the delay has been outside the control of the New Zealand Government. The Government has been prepared to offer guarantees to help Comalco to raise finance on the New York market and there is still a likelihood that the Government will nominate the scheme as one deserving World Bank support.

The Government does not yet know how Comalco intends to finance the project Since Consolidated Zinc merged with Rio Tinto a year ago. however, it has seemed likely that the participating companies—the Conzinc-Rio Tinto combine and the Kaiser Aluminium Company—will be able to finance much of the Southland project from their own resources.

There is no indication so far that the Government will participate directly in the financial arrangements. Some time before the aluminium project is ready power generated from the underground power scheme associated with the Lake Manapouri system will be available and it will be transmitted to the North Island

by the Cook Strait power cable. The Government has already agreed to take surplus power from Manapouri and this is likely to occur early, as the generators will have an output of 400,000 kilowatts initially on continuous load. The requirements of the smelter in' the early stages will be about 295.000 kilowatts.